Brake mechanism



Jan. 12 1926. l1,569,338

AGfw. Ross BRAKE MECHANISM Fild Jan". 27,"1925 2 shuts-snee: 1-

f nr.

cgw.V ROSS BRAKE KECHANISM lFiled Jan. 27, 1925 2 sheen-Sheet 2 ATTORN?g Patented J an.. l2, 1926.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT orifice-.

GEORGE W. ROSS, OF HUNTINGTONH`PARK, CJIOBN, ASSIGNOB T0 F. 'L HETZELAND'A. .'H. HETZEL, BOTH OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.'

" BRAKE M EcmNIsM.

Y Appm-ation mea-January 27, 192s.- serial 11.- 615,367.

To all whom it may concern;

-Be it known that I, GEORGE W. Ross, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Huntington Park, in the county vo f Los Angeles and Stateof California, have invented new and useful Improvements in BrakeVMechanisms, of which the following is a specification.`

This invention relates to and. has for a' vmain object the provision ofan improved type of brake mechanism'particularly adapted for use inlight touringcars and trucks,

' where the standard brake equipment of the cars is not adequate andecient.

Another object is to provide an improved brake mechanism including.drums attachable to the wheels'of, light ears, and of substantially-larger diameter than the stand- -ard brake drums provided` on suchcars, which are supplemental to the usual brake drums and are adapted tobe installed on the cars without necessitating-the removal of V theusual brakes, thusl providing greater eficiency and a substantiallyincreasedbraking power-than is possible with the standard brakes. n y vA still vfurther object is to-provide abrake mechanism including bothemergency-and service brake operating-means, and brake drumsv ofsubstantial diameter Aand width providing increased braking power,connected together centrally-of the car yand independently connectedwith emergency and service brake levers whereby the brakes may beAappliedby foot power, as in "the usual service brake methods, and maybe permalever. s

Another object is to provide a brake mechanism including an equalizer towhich the brake drums are connected, andmeans for adjustably connectingthe brake operating members with the equalizer whereby all lost vmotionmay be eliminated and thebrakes accurately adjusted for providiligamaximum efficiency. f

Other objects willappear as the descrip tion progresses.

I have shown one practical embodiment of my invention in theaccompanying drawings, in which: y

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of the rear axle housing of anautomobile, showing an inside view of one of the brake drums andoperating mechanism therefor.

Fig..2 is a side elvation of the`brake `operating mechanism at the frontof an automobile. I

"Fig 3' is a shown in Fig.

Fig. .4: is a plan view of the mechanism shown in Fig.'.2. y

Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the m'eoh anism shown in' Fig. 2, online 5-`5 thereof.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the equalizer'con- 05 nection as see'n fromline 6-6 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary enlarged view of the brake band anchor, shown inFig. *1.

Fi .-8 vis a fragmentary view-'of an adjusta le connection between thebrake operating levers ty ical of my invention.

Fig. 9 is a ace Vview of one of themembers shown in Fig.` 8. f

Fig. 10 is an enlar d transverse section of u one of the brake ins,wheel Vand axle housing; and y 4 Fig. 1,1 is a-front elevation of aportion of. thesame. Y 'i 'f Referring particularly to Figs. l0 and 11,I have shown the usual brake `drums D attached to the spokes vS vof thewheel'Wbyf f means of a plurality of bolts 1, 1, etc whichv extendthrough an outer flange Band an inner flange 4 of the wheel W, and alsothrough' the web 5 of the usual drum D, and thus serve to hold the drumD in lxed position on the wheel W. The inner flan e 4 has a hub 6 whichextends throughv the ange 3' and outwardly from the wheel W, andcarriesa cap 7 threaded onto the end thereof. 00

Said hub is adapted to be keyed or other- I plan view of the inechainsm'nently set by thev usual emergency 4bralel` wise fixed to the rearaxleA of the vehicle,

' f 'and the said axle is enclosed by the,usual housing H and has rollerbearings R,' R, `internally of the housing. The. outer ends of the axlehousing Hcarry the usual brakel `the drum D. On'cars ofthe typeshown in10o the drawings, the standard brakes are ofi the internal .expandingtype, the mechanisml thereof being eliminated from the disclo# sure inFig. 10. It will be understood that the aforenamed '105 elements are notmaterial to my invention and constitute a'standard type of construc-`tion for automobilesnow in vogue, however, the drums D are usually ofsmall diameter and width and do not provide ample brak- "'n'fgsurface soas to render the brakes ecient, and in order to overcome this difficultyI provide drums Dj which are adapted to be attachedto the, wheels W andwhich overlie and are concentrically mounted with respect to thestandard drums D, Suppleal brake bands B which almost surroundthe drumsD", the ends of the bands B and B being substantially spaced aparton thefront face of the drums D.

Each of the drums D has a 'supporting member S in the form of a curvedarm which is adapted to be stationarily held on the ilange 9 of member Mby -means of bolts 12', 12 having nuts 13, 13 on the ends thereof, asshown in Figs.' 1, 3, 10 and 11.

The members S have extensions e which project rearwardly from therearmost bolt 12 and continue at right angles as at e (Fig. 7 so as tooverlie the brake bands B. The metal bands B" are provided at a pointcentrally of their ends andrearwardly of the axle housing H with anchorstraps E, and the ends 14, 14, of the members E are attached to thebands B by means of screws or rivets 15, 15, etc. l

The members E have rearwardly extended openings 16 formed thereon whichreceive the transversely disposed portions e of the supporting members Sand members E and and S are adjustably connected together by means ofbolts 17 which are attached to the ends e of members S at their innerends, and the uter ends of said bolts extend through the portions 18 ofthe members E and carry a pairv of nuts 19, 19, while the centralportions of the bolts 17 between the outer face of portions e of membersS and the inner side of portion 18 of member E carry springs 20 whichserve to resiliently hold the brake band B inyadjusted position relativelto the drum D.

The members S are also provided with depending arms 21 which extendthrough apertures 22 formed in straps 23 attached to the lowermostportion of the bands B', as shown in Fig. 10, thus serving to hold theband B in operating position on the drums D. The members S also haveoutwardly and upwardly curved -arms 24 formed integrally therewith whichslidablyV receive and hold adjusting rods 25 having pairs of nuts 26,26, threaded thereon below 'the end 27 of the arms 24, and the lowermostend of each rod is threaded into a socket 28 of a clevis 29.

The ends of the bands B are riveted or otherwise attached to members 30and 3l respectively, andthe members 30 have extensions 432 with concavedepressions 33 (shown in Fig. 11) formed -in the upper sides thereof.The adjusting rods 25 are adapted to extend at their upper ends throughbores in the extensions 32 of members 30 and receive adjusting nuts 34above saidl extensions 32 which have convex portions on their lower endsconforming to the concave depressions 33 in the extensions 32, so thatwhen the nuts 34 are adjusted, they will be held in adjusted positionuntil otherwise adjusted to a further extent.

The members 31 which are attached to the lower ends of the bands B arepivotally connected at 35 (as shown in Fig. 1) with brake operatinglevers L and said levers are connected at 36 and forwardly of members31, with the lower ends of the clevises 29, so that when the-levers Lare pulled forwardly, the ends of the band B will be drawn together bymeans of the connection described.

The adjusting rods 25 on each of the brake drums carries a coiled spring37 which is adapted to compress between the portion 32 of member 30, andthe portion 27 of arm 24 when the lever L is operated,

and the tension of said spring serves to`v In the particular type ofcar` shown in the drawings the housing H has a flange 38 formed thereonat the rear of the forward joint J, towhich is connected a pair of braceor tie rods 39, 39, on opposite sides of the housing H, and said rodsextend rearwardly in a diagonal plane and are attached to andsubstantially held on the fianges 9 of member M (shown in Fig. 3) bymeans of bolts 40 extending through the end portions 4l of said rods.

The fiange 38 on the housing H is of the character shown in Fig. 5, andhas a plurality of bolts 42-4 in number-which serve'to hold the abuttingportions of the housing H together, and the rods 39, 39 are extendedthrough the liange 38 on the horizontal center line of the propeller'shaft P in lieu of two of said bolts.

' Now, in order to provide a suitable means for connecting my improvedmechanism with the brake drums hereinbefore described,

llU

Lacasse spaced lugs 44, 44,` adapted to be attached to-the threaded ends45, 45 of the rods 39,- 39 and held thereon by means of nuts 46,-

one end' of riveted or 4bolted to the bottom 40 of the bracket, and areadapted to hold a short transverse shaft 51. In the exact center of thecar and immediately below the .propeller shaft housing H', I provide anarmv52 which is fixed -to the, transverse shaft 51 and v'extendssubstantially downwardly therefrom. vThe lower end of said arm is.epivoted ati53 tothe forward end of'a link 54, and the rear end of saidlink is pivoted lrto an equalizer bar 5'6 which is held (c`inthe"slotted end'of the link, as shown in he bar v56 extendstransversely of the housing H and is pivoted to the link 54 at pointsequi-distant from its ends, while thev ends of said bar are pivoted at57,57 to'conneoting rods 58, 58 which extend rearwardly to and areconnected with the upper A5 of bolts or f The sha `3K5 43`issubstantially extended from the brackends of leversV L, L, respectively,by means pins-59.v

5l which is `held on bracket et to the'left, as shown in Fig. 5, andcarries a collar 60 which is fixed to said shaft and has a liange 61,-asshown in Figs. 8 and 9,

"0 the outer face of 'which is-provided with a series ofv radiallyformed notches as at n.

' The end of the shaft 51 is threaded and re- Ice'bves a nut 62 andloosely carries an upwardly extended arm 63 which has a hub 64 thereonAalso notched, as at n, to correond to the notches of 'the flange 61, so

ft at `whenthe nut 62 is loosened the mem- ?bers 60 and 63 may beadjusted for determining the proper o erating position of the arm 63,and therea ter wheny the-nut 62 is tightened and the arm 63 properlyadjusted, said arm will be held in adjusted position by means of theteeth on one of the members Vseating in the notches on the adjacentmember.

. The arm 63 of shaft 51 is connected with the usual brake pedal P bymeans of a connecting rod 64 which is y.pivotally connected to the upperend of arm 63 at 65 and is pivoted on a depending arm 66 of pedal P at67, and the pedalP is mounted on a short transverse shaft 67 usually'ournaled on the transmission housing ol motor. I may also employ anadjustable joint between the arms 66 and thepedal P on shaft 67 of thecharactershown 1n Figs.

the

s and 9, if it is found desirable, for Obtainin an laccurate adjustment.of the operatlng parts thereof, but it 'is deemed that the joint betweenthe members 60 and 63 on shaft 51 willusually afford ample adjustment.

On certain types of'vehicles, a transverse 'shaft 68-is provided whichhas a'centrally curved portion 69 extending downwardly under the forwardpropeller shaft joint` J,

and to one end of the shaft 68 an emergency lever L is usuallyattached,', while the standard brake ,drums D, D on the wheels W, lV areconnected with the shaft 68 at unequal distances from the housing H.

Now, in order to provide more satis-. v factory means of 'connecting thebrake drums with the emergency lever L, I prjv vide an adjustableconnection between the curved portion 69 of shaft 68 and the dependingarm 52 which is connected with the equalizer bar 56, as shown in Figs. 2and 6. This connection embodies a member 70 which has its forward end 71formed"` into a U and embracing the curved portion 69 ofthe emergencyrod, 68, and the opposite legs of the U are connected by means of a bolt71 which holds the member 70 rmly in position on the rod 68. The cen'-tral portion of member 70 has an elongatedv opening 72 therethroughvwh-ich adjustabl'y receives'the arm' 52 attached to shaft 51,"

and the rear end of member 70 has a .boss 73 thereon thrcugh which anadjusting screw 74 is threaded and adapted to be locked in adjustedpositionl by means of a" nut 75 so that the forward end of'r lsaid-screw willengage the rear edge of thearm 552 as shown in Fig. 2. Thearm 52 carries a spring 76 whichis coiled therearound and adapted toco'mpress between the upper side of. member 70 and hub 52 of the'arm 52as shown in Fig.

'5, so as to resiliently hold the rear end of member 70 downwardly inthe 'directionof the lower end of the arm 52.

Now, it will be observed from the foregoing description of my improveddevice that the connections between the pair of brake drums D', D andthe pedal P and lever L at the front of the car are made in the exactcenter of the car, below the propeller shaft housing H', and theequalizer` bar 56 is interposed between the drums and operating membersso that the strain on the rods 56, 56 will be equalized whenv the,

brakes are operated by either the service .pedal P or the emergencylever L.v

Furthermore the connections with the operating" members being below thehousing H', obviates any noise due to the contact of the rods with otherparts of the .machine during the movement of the car. After the brakesare adjusted pro erly and installed on the'wheels W, W an the brakes areset at the rear Lof the car and connected lwith. the rear ofthe edele,theequalizer pedals may be nicely a justed so' as "to take up all lostmotion in the pedalsby means ofthefk adjusting screw 74 of member 70',andi".l

also by' means ofthe adjustable yjoint be? tween the members 60 and6301i shaft 5l so that there will be no lost motion between.

- the operating members and/ the brakes.

,shown and described is such that a maximum throw of the pull rods isprovided',

`thereby providing a maximum braking ef fort at each operation of thepedal P or the ylever L,'and altogether a more satisfactory braking sstem is provided than in the standard rakes vusually supplied withthecar. 'y j It is to be further noted that the character of the brakedrums and the operatingv mechanism thereof is such that the entire jHmechanism 'may be readily and quickly-installed on-a car Withoutnecessitating the removal of the usual internal brakes housed within thedrums D, D, and Without necessitating the provision of new Vtie rods.

'It is tobe noted also that when the larger and more eicient brakes ofmy present 1n- `vention are installed on a car vof the type shown, anddescribed, ,the additional brakes may be utilized for both service andemergency' brakes, thus increasing the elficiency of both the serviceand emergency brakes. v

It 'will be quite obvious to those skilled in the art that 'I haveprovideddistinct im` provements particular y adapted for use on lightcars where the brakes are. not eilicient and are undersize, Vand thatWhile I have described and shown much that is old in the art for thepurpose of clearly explaining my invention, ,the particular features areembodied in the operating mechanism for the brakes, as clearly shown inFigs; 2, 4 and 5.

It is conceived to be ossible to modify or alter my invention wit in thescope of the appended claims without departing from the s irit thereof.-Y v 15A brake mechanism including a plurali of brakes, an equalizer bartransversely disposed forwardly of said brakes, separateconnections'between said equalizer bar and said brakes connected atpolnts equi-distant from the' longitudinal axis of the vehicle,adjustable devices connected with said equali'zer bar disposed inthe-plane of the longitudinal axis ofthe vehicle, and separate p Lacassehand and foot levers' independently and adjustably. connectedv therewithfor selectively operating said brakes by either of saidlevers at will.

"2. In 1a brake mechanism independently mounted hand and foot operatingdevices, and connecting means including a member .pivotally connectedwith said hand operating'device,l an arm connected with-said footoperated device extending `through said member and adapted, forvoperable connection with a brakel mechanism, whereby either of Asaidhand and footoperated devices may be employed for operating the brakes.

3. ln a `brake mechanism independently mounted hand and foot operatingdevices,

and connecting means including a member pivotally conectad with saidhand operating device, an arm connected with said foot' operated deviceextending through. said member and adaptedy for operable connection with-a brake mechanism, whereby either of said hand and foot operateddevices'may be employed for operating the brakes, the connection between saidhand and foot operated u' devices being adjustable for accuratelfyfixing the extent of the movement thereo 4.' In a brake mechanism a footoperated4 lever having an axis` disposed transversely of the vehicle, acounter shaft paralleling the axis thereof, an arm on said shaftpivotally connected with said lever and adjust ably connected with saidshaft, a hand operated lever, a shaft therefor paralleling said othershaft, an arm on said first mentioned shaft, a link connectingtheshaft'l ofl said hand operated lever with said last men the axisthereof, an arm on said shaft pivotally connected with said lever andadjustably connected with said shaft, a hand operated lever, a shafttherefor paralleling said other shaft, .an arm on said first mentionedshaft, a, link connecting the shaft, of said hand operated .lever withsaid last -mentioned arm, means for adjustably connecting said link withsaid arm, a brake mechanism connected with saidarm and adapted to beoperated selectively by either of said levers 'at will, and meansinterposed between said first mentioned shaft and said link forresiliently holdingsaid link in operative position.

y. GEORGE W. ROSS.

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